5 years for defrauding homeowners in foreclosures

CRIME

Published 4:00 am, Thursday, November 24, 2011

A Fremont woman was sentenced to five years in state prison Wednesday for defrauding homeowners with false promises of saving them from foreclosure, prosecutors said.

Angeline Lizarrago, 69, had pleaded no contest to a charge of grand theft. Alameda County Superior Court Judge Kevin Murphy ordered her to repay $31,000 to nine victims. Two more victims are seeking additional restitution at a hearing in February. A co-defendant, Michael Young, 68, of Los Gatos, has pleaded not guilty and is scheduled for trial in January.

Between June 2008 and October 2009, Lizarrago told numerous homeowners facing foreclosure that she would get their banks to renegotiate their loans and save their property, said Attorney General Kamala Harris, whose office joined District Attorney Nancy O'Malley in the prosecution.

Lizarrago targeted Spanish-speaking homeowners and Southeast Asian immigrants from the Bay Area and the Central Valley, Harris said. She said Lizarrago typically charged them $1,500 and promised a refund if she was unsuccessful, but many clients lost their homes and got no refund. Lizarrago also had a previous conviction for grand theft, Harris said.